Downward Spiral
by VeritySeph
Summary: Sephiroth and Cloud are in love, but when Sephiroth starts hurting Cloud it's up to Zack to save him. What will Zack do--get in the way of Seph and Cloud's dangerous relationship, and what happens when Zack falls in love with Cloud? Non-con S/C, Z/C R
1. Chapter 1

Hi! I'm new to this site, but I've been thinking about writing for a looooooooong while, and I decided to come out of the woodwork and present my first story you you guys! I really really really hope you all like it, because I am so effing nervous about it right now.

WARNING: MALE ON MALE SEX! IF YOU DON'T LIKE, PLEASE DON'T READ!!!

PS: I totally don't want to offend anyone, but this has some things like rape and stuff. It's not a nice subject, but I will make the story worth your while! Poor Cloud! But, he'll be loved, so don't worry. It'll be a little angsty for a while, but when we get to the good stuff it'll be smooth sailing. Hehe!

SephSephSephSephSephSephSeph

Sephiroth never saw such a beautiful boy before in his entire life.

That's what led them to this, to this pinnacle of despair and lonliness, to the place where no other could ever reach. This was his sin, this was his destiny to become a murderer. He wouldn't even care now if Zack killed him, for all that he did to Cloud... to Nibelheim. What he had done to his angel's home... what he had done to his little Cloud, his soft-spoken Cloud.

Cloud. Sweet, innocent, beautiful Cloud. His eyes sparkled like the sun, but his pain. Oh, his pain. That sweet virgin boy screaming and writhing underneath him. There had never been more enticing sight. That smell, the smell of come and blood and Sephiroth's lust didn't taint that boy. Cloud's soul was so pure, so bright and shining that he didn't even question his body as it went into action, grabbing Cloud and pinning him to the wall.

He had looked so scared, so nervous as Sephiroth licked and sucked at his perk nipples, shining with Sephiroth's saliva. he moaned and cried, he asked for his mother once, but Sephiroth only stroked his hardness, telling him to be quiet. Cloud's mother couldn't do anything, not right now. Right now, Sephiroth was in control, and wanted to make Cloud feel everything that had built up inside of him for the past few weeks, watching the blonde boy swish by his office every morning, walking by with his hips swinging so enticingly.

"Don't be nervous, my little angel," Sephiroth said as he pulled down his pants, letting his monstrous cock jut out, touching the boy's bare bottom. He let out a groan and looked down at Cloud with his mysterious green orbs. "Please, Cloud. Touch it. I want you to put it in your mouth and suck it."

Cloud's lips trembled, and there were tears in his baby blue eyes. his face was soft and slick with tears, but Sephiroth had never seen something so erotic before. He cried when Sephiroth pulled his mouth open and when those warm lips surrounded his penis, Sephiroth moaned and Cloud seemed to gag for a minute.

"Are you okay?" Sephiroth asked, and Cloud tried to shake his head, but the member inside of his mouth was preventing words. It was hard and Sephiroth felt like Cloud's very breath would make him cum.

He removed his penis from Cloud's mouth after a moment, only to hear Cloud cough and sputter. He grabbed the bedsheets, and Sephiroth saw him squirm.

"Stay still," Sephiroth cooed as he took hold of himself and placing it to Cloud's entrance. It was constricted, probably because the poor boy was nervous, but Sephiroth quickly pushed himself in, listening to Cloud cry. "It'll feel good in a minute, I promise," he said through pants, and he was sure that in a few minutes Cloud would be exploring the deepest paths to heaven that any person could ever tread.

Sephiroth remembered that this was the first time the boy had ever done anything like this, and it was a remarkable feeling to know that he was the first, and would be the only, person to ever touch the trooper's warm skin, to suck at Cloud's still-growing erection, to taste Cloud's essence when they kissed.

Or so, that's what Sephiroth believed.

He was sure that Cloud loved him, would always love him, and that his impromptu love-making to the boy, who he had spoken very little with but his heart had spoken the rest, would be with him forever. There was nothing else that Sephiroth would have accepted, he concluded when he came inside of Cloud's tight hole, pulling out and seeing that there was blood speckling the ivory bedsheets, a symbol of their passion in a world where it was probably unacceptable.

Cloud had cum, as well. It was smeared across his chest, and it had splattered his sweaty cheek, a memento of their moments together, on the bed, in each other's arms.

CloudCloudCloudCloudCloudCloudCloudCloud

Cloud hadn't known what was going on. He was walking down the hallway when his hero, the god himself, Sephiroth, stopped and grabbed his hand, pulling him into his office. The office was connected to the man's lavish bedroom, white like the snow. He was a little sweaty from his daily workout, trying to get stronger because the other cadets kept picking on him for being a little too small, a little too weak. It wasn't like he wasn't trying!

He just wasn't good enough to be a SOLDIER, and he wondered if he should just give up, go home and marry that ugly girl that his mother had picked out for him. How awful a life he would lead--living in a town where everyone hating him, pretending that he was straight simply to be accepted by society. It wasn't fair, damn it! Why couldn't he be a SOLDIER, where he could happily be gay? The SOLDIERs didn't care; their entire operation was based on the men being close. He had seen the warm, loving looks the SOLDIERs gave one another, and he wanted that, too. To be accepted by someone, to be taken care of. He wanted to show everyone that ever doubted him that he was good enough, strong enough, to be able to make it to SOLDIER, and then find a nice lover to hold his hand as they lived out life together.

But this wasn't right.

Why was Sephiroth acting like this? Sure, Cloud couldn't ever think of a time where he hadn't wanted Sephiroth as a lover, but why so fast? Why did he pull him out without saying a word.

"Sephiroth, why did you pick me?" Cloud asked as he pulled himself away from Sephiroth, after the man was done.

"Because I've been looking at you for a very long time, Cloud. I wanted you for so very long, and I want to make you mine forever. Can that be, Cloud? My little angel, I want to have you forever. Will you kill me, tear off my wings and cast me to the side, never to allow me to touch you again?"

Cloud pondered this. When it began, it was so terrifying. He was so scared, shaking with fear and anxiety. Why him, why him, he questioned, but now... that was okay. Sephiroth was saying he loved him. Why care about the why, and not on the now?

"I..."

"I didn't hurt you, did I?"

Cloud looked down at himself, feeling his insides warm and tingly. "I don't think so," he answered. But, he tried to move and his body was wracked with a sudden sharp pain in his body. "Ooooow."

"It seems I have hurt you, my little angel," Sephiroth said as he leaned over, staring at Cloud with his deep, impenetrable orbs. "Let me find some materia to sooth you."

"No..." Cloud said, grabbing Sephiroth's bicep. "Don't leave, please. I don't want to be alone again. If you leave, that'd leave me alone, and what if I fall asleep? What if this was just a dream?"

Cloud looked up to Sephiorth,gazing deeply into the silver-haired man's eyes. "I don't want to fall asleep... keep me up?"

Sephiroth laid himself back down.

"You won't be able to go to training tomorrow."

"I know."

"Would you like me to write you a pass for the day? I can say that you were busy this helping me with more important matters."

"If you could," Cloud answered, happily nuzzling his face into Sephiroth's chest. "I don't want to get kicked out of the Army. I need to become a SOLDIER, like you."

Sephiroth's arms became hard, and Cloud could almost feel anxiety rolling off the man... his lover. How weird it was to think about Sephiroth, the allmighty Sephiroth, like that. Lover. Lover... his lover. The man who he would give anything to be with. He had him, now. What could ever be better than that?

ZackZackZackZackZackZackZackZackZack

Zack was the one who started to see their relationship change. At first, he was happy for his two friends, happy to see love bloom in a place where he didn't think love could exist.

Ever since he had broken up with Aeris, he had been harboring secret feelings for his little blonde-haired friend. He'd never act on them, though. It was Sephiroth's lover, Sephiroth's only lover, if the rumors were true. He'd never want to break up his two best friends... but things were a little different with their relationship, now.

Zack wasn't blind. He could see the bruises on Cloud's baby-soft skin, hear the whimpers and the crying from behind Sephiroth's locked door. Things weren't right in Cloud and Sephiroth's loveland. Those cries of passion weren't fit for Sephiroth's ears. But Cloud, Cloud wasn't willing to let Sephiroth go, even though their relationship had escalated to abuse--even rape. That wasn't a place Cloud needed. He was like a Chocobo--he needed tender love and care, not this abusive affair that Sephiroth had going. It was unacceptable for Cloud to just act like nothing was wrong. It was... so very disturbing, Zack thought.

So, the SOLDIER decided what any good friend would do--he confronted Cloud, tried to swindle the boy to see the light. It didn't really work out as well as he hoped, though. Sephiroth found out and the next day Cloud had a black eye. He said he tripped during training--unbelievable. The boy hadn't even been going to training very much, Sephiroth keeping him locked up in that bedroom.

The next course of action would be tricky--he'd have to show Cloud exactly what love was, but it would be hard considering that Sephiroth had all the power in the world. What was going on with his best friend--or soon to be ex-best friend if he continued to hurt Zack's Cloud...

But how would he convince Cloud that Sephiroth wasn't any good, not anymore?

EndEndEndEndEndEndEndEnd

OKAY! End of first chappie. Tell me what'cha liked. I totally love reviews and they make me super happy! I give internet cookies, too. YUM!


	2. Chapter 2

Okay! I finally figured out how to work the little bar things, so now they'll all have that spiffy bar between the breaks and stuff! So, now you won't know whose POV it's in, but I'm sure you'll catch on, as you're all super smart!

* * *

Zack looked at Cloud's bruised eyes, the blood running down his pale, soft cheek. The black and blue splattered across his nose and cheeks was so distracting, and Zack had to tighten his fists not to reach out and pull the poor, innocent little boy into his arms. He wanted nothing more than to clutch Cloud's downy hairs and kiss his battered eyelids, comfort the boy in ways only he could. But first...

"What did he do, baby?" Zack asked, comfortingly. "I won't tell, I promise. You poor thing, you look so scared."

"I'm fine Zack, really. I just fell down the stairs to the library." Cloud brushed a hand over his cheek, feeling the puffy and swolen skin. "Really, Zack. I'm fine. There's nothing to worry about--I just need to stop walking into things. Sephiroth doesn't like my face to be bruised; I should go and clean up, see if I can get one of the other cadets to give me a potion or something."

"Cloud, you're lying to yourself, but you can't lie to me, damn it! I'm your friend, aren't I? I'm supposed to take care of you, make sure that things like this don't happen! Why did he hit you, Cloud?"

The boy looked up through watery blue orbs, a tear rolling down his battered skin. "I'm fine, Zack. Sephiroth's never ever hurt me before."

"Liar," Zack said as he grabbed Cloud's wrist, pulling him close, giving into the wanton touch he had resisted for so long. Even battered and broken the boy was beautiful. His hair was satin against his cheek, and when Zack released his arm, he wrapped both around the boy's shoulders. "I won't let him hurt you, baby. I can't let him hurt you. It's not right, it's not right at all."

Cloud hit Zack's chest weakly. "I don't know what you're talking about!" he yelled. "I'm fine, Zack! Let go of me--"

But Zack did none of the sort. "It's okay, Cloud. I'll take care of you, I promise. I'm your best friend, I want to be the one who holds you when you're sad. You shouldn't ever be sad; you're my baby, I've got to take care of you. Good care of you."

"But you can't fix this, Zack," Cloud finally relented, nearly falling to his knees in anguish. If Zack hadn't been there to hold him up he would have been sprawled over the floor, laid out for Sephiroth's torment. "You can't fix this. I can't fix this. Sephiroth is Sephiroth... I love him, even when he gets mad at me. He loves me, Zack. No one's ever loved me before. I can't even think of a day without him."

Zack opened his mouth to say something, but he felt the very air in his lungs go cold and something--no... _someone_... was looking at him. Straight through. They could probably see the wetness of Cloud's cheeks through his skin, the blood running down with those crystal tears, leaving smudgy tracks against Zack's uniform. He knew who was looking at him, the only person that could look straight through him and see his soul, see his entire being with just a glance. That would never change--Sephiroth knew him too well.

"Sephiroth!" Zack yelled across the hallway, his words clanking against the metal walls. Sephiroth stood like a demi-god, his silver hair sweeped across the dark leather that seemed almost wet. His eyes, cat-like in appearance, stared intranced at the scene, and Zack felt Cloud shudder under his fingers. The man took a step forward, the light of the overhead lamp throwing his entire face into a surreal flush. Hid skin seemed to almost sparkle, very much like his eyes.

It would be a lie to say that Zack had never been attracted to Sephiroth. With those beautiful eyes and that lush, long hair... Zack didn't even want to remember his body, the curve of his neck, the look of his part lips when he took a sip of something. The man was a wet dream in real life, but at the same time Zack couldn't look at his gorgeous body and angel face without thinking about his fists pummeling into Cloud's soft, tender skin. So not right, not at all.

"How could you do this!" Zack demanded, holding the shaking Cloud closer. "How could you do this to him, Seph! I trusted you--you were my friend. How could you hurt Cloud like this, when he's been nothing but gentle, nothing but kind! Sephiroth, you're not supposed to hurt the one you love."

Sephiroth sighed and looked down, before smirking cruely. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Zack. Now, Cloud--come. We should not go to our _friends_ without thinking of the consequences. We will need to have a _talk_."

Zack tightened his hands around a squirming Cloud. "I won't let you have him!"

"Let go of me, Zack!" Cloud sobbed, banging his small fists into Zack's stomach. "I want to go with him! You've got these crazy ideas, Zack--Sephiroth's never hurt me before in my life! He loves me, he loves me, he loves me!" Cloud screamed his words out.

"Give me my lover, Zack. You've done your damage. I will take care of him." That horrible smirk was still plastered across his cruel face. "Cloud, come to me. Let me bring you to my rooms, let me heal you."

"OVER MY DEAD BODY!" Zack yelled as he reached backwards, grabbing at his sword. But before he realized it, Cloud was torn away from his chest, cradled in Sephiroth's large arms. He looked like a child, so beautiful and at peace, though how he could be at peace when he was in his abuser's arms made no sense at all. "Cloud--" Zack cried, dropping his sword down before falling to his knees. "Cloud!"

Cloud cried out something into Sephiroth's chest, something that Zack could not understand. Before he knew it, Sephiroth was turning around, his hair haloing his head like an angel, Cloud still in his arms. It was so horrifying, how Zack could be on his knees, watching the boy he loved, the boy he treasured beyond anything, being brought to a place where he would be abused again. What would happen next? Would Sephiroth rape him, take that last shed of innocence from Cloud, pull it away and throttle it with his long, silver locks?

Zack slumped down further, wishing that he could be in Cloud's place, instead. That the boy he loved beyond words would be okay, would be safe.

* * *

Sephiroth held Cloud down, blood pouring from Cloud's newly cracked nose. The blood was so beautiful on his new white sheets--bought for the specific purpose of being used to show Cloud his punishment.

Oh yes, Sephiroth thought as he licked his lips, listening to Cloud squeal and cry beneath him. This was beautiful and so very much worth it. Cloud deserved it, too. He had been off with Zack! Who knows what they had been doing together? Oh, he knew that his second-in-command had begun to crush on his delicate little flower, his blooming bud. What would Zack do if he was allowed to caress his Cloud's skin, allowed to leave his mark in a way no other could? No one would ever touch Cloud--he would murder if he had to.

Zack was becoming a pest, digging his nose into things that he shouldn't have been. What he and Cloud shared was too beautiful to be so freely known to the others around him. Cloud was his! HIS!

Cloud cried for only a moment before pulling at the bedsheets, his hands tangled and twined like knots in the ivory cloth. The blood was spilling from his nose and over his lips, into his hair and onto the pillowcases.

"Don't bleed too much, my little angel," Sephiorth cooed into Cloud's ear. He licked the shell with reverance. "I want you to be awake when I enter you. Don't you want to be awake for the fun?"

Cloud's eyes were hazy and fogged, and though there were tears rolling down like little pearls from the heaven, mixing with the saltly and sweet fluid of crimson, he looked perfect. The boy didn't say anything, and when Sephiroth pushed himself into Cloud's constricting muscles the boy barely let out a scream. Barely.

"I love you," the boy choked, his fingers digging deeper. "I love you, Sephi--"

Sephiroth leaned down and kissed Cloud's mouth, hard. "Don't talk," Sephiroth hissed as he pulled all the way out before slamming his large cock back into his angel... his. "Don't talk, my Cloud."

"Uhhhhhhmmmmm," Cloud moaned and though the tears were still dotting from his eyes, he couldn't say anything. Sephiroth knew just what to do. He choked with a cry as Sephiroth fully withdrew his long length and grabbed something from the side drawer.

Sephiroth, with a swish, brought the long, thick and pusling rod and without wait shoved it into Cloud. He only waited a moment before turning it on fucll blast.

"AHHH!" Cloud screamed, and Sephiroth jerked the dildo from side to side, pushing deeper and deeper.

"Scream louder!" Sephiroth demanded as he yanked the metal from Cloud, pushing it in and out, in and out.

"_Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh_!" Cloud screamed, so loud that it rocked the entire room.

* * *

Zack listened as Cloud screamed and Sephiroth groaned. There was a door between them, holding him from the boy that needed him. Sephiroth was torturing him! He needed to do something, think of some way to save his precious little chocobo baby. He was the only one that could.

And like a blueprint the ideas began to swirl inside of his head, and Zack knew exactly what he needed to do to save his Cloud from Sephiroth, to have his Cloud in his arms, to have his Cloud safe and in a right, proper love where he wasn't hurt or abused. Cloud deserved it, and so did he.

"I'll save you, Cloud! Just give me a little time... this needs to work out perfectly, or you'll be hurt even worse..."

He looked at the door one more time, listened to what seemed to be Sephiroth's final, breathless moan and Cloud's chilling, heartbreaking sob... pulled out his cell phone and made a call to the only person he knew would be able to help.

"Hey... yeah. I need your help."

* * *

Who is Zack calling? How will he be able to save Cloud? And what happens when things don't go according to plan? Well, you'll just have to wait until the next chapter, where my sick and twistedly awesome ideas will finally start to come into fruition. It's so exciting!!! Anyways, please review and I'll give you tons of cookies and plushie bears! I'll even give you a Zack bear! He's so cute!!!


	3. Chapter 3

Hai! I've been working super extra hard on this new chapter, because I totally want this to be the most perfect story that I can possibly create. I know everyone likes their story, but I kinda want mine to stand out a little, ya know? Thank you for all of the super nice reviews I've gotten, and I really really hope to see more of your smiling faces. ANYWAYS--this chapter gets plotty. Watch for the plot!

* * *

Zack pulled out his sword, the light of the damp, dark and cold training room glittering off of its steel. It was a nice blade, one that Angeal had made for him. He loved Angeal--the man had been his mentor and friend... but before Aeris they had been brief lovers. That was why he was here, now, right?

When he had left Angeal for Aeris, he had all but broken the older man. His affection for Aeris dwindled after a while, and Zack always wondered if it would have been best to have stayed with Angeal. But then, he mused, he wouldn't have fallen in love with Cloud. And now that Cloud neeeded him, it was a good thing to have such a fluential friend.

"Okay, I talked to Reno. He's been wanting to jump your bones for a while now, and he's quite excited about the idea of him being yours. I think it's the stubble," Zack added with a mischievious smirk.

"Then, Puppy, what do you need of me?"

Angeal always looked so serious. Maybe Reno would help his old boyfriend be a little happier. Though Zack had been the rebound boy after Genesis decided that he perfered to have him mind wrapped up in ideas about his lovely goddess, Zack knew that Angeal could always be there for him. It was something that made the blazing blue-eyed boy smile. He looked down to see his face reflected in the mirror of his steel blade. His eyes stood out the most, so bright against his clear complexion.

"I want to challenge Sephiroth in front of the entire squad," the boy said as he ran a hand through his hair. "I want to challenge him, and when I win I want to be able to take Cloud away from him. He's killing him!"

Zack felt the teardrop glisten down his cheek, Angeal leaning forward to catch it on his fingertip.

"Don't cry, my little Puppy," Angeal said as he embraced Zack, pulling him into a stiffling hug. "I'll do whatever you desire, just tell me. Shhh, don't cry."

Zack bit back a howl of sorror as his cheeks became emblazoned by the tears against his pale skin. Angeal always made him feel so at home, so very loved. It was something he never wanted to give up...

_Cloud... I need to save Cloud right now._

"Will you gelp me, Ange? Please, oh please. I can't live with Sephiroth hurting my baby like this anymore. I talked to Reno and he said he could help me get Cloud away from sephiroth while I'm fighting. I also talked to Aeris, and she says I can hide him in her church until I can figure out a way to snap Sephiroth back into shape..."

"He may already be gone."

Zack bit his lip, feeling the warm blood slither down his throat. "Not true... Seph is a good guy."

And so they went about their planning, not seeing the maniac in the corner of the room, carressing his book.

* * *

"I challenge you to a duel!" Zack yelled over the talking of many of the SOLDIERs and grunts. He pointed his finger towards Sephiroth, who was helping a very dazed Cloud into his seat at his dinner table.

"Pardon me?" Sephiroth silkily hissed, his green pupils sliting. "Say that again."

The ebony-haired boy raised his finger higher. "I challenge you to a duel. If I win, I want you to give me Cloudy-baby and you'll let us leave. You'll never hurt Cloud, and you'll go back to who you once were!"

"And if you lose?"

He hadn't thought about that... there was no chance that he would lose. Cloud's honor and dignity was at stake, and there was nothing that could ever make Zack not think that he would win. And anyway, during the match Reno and Angeal were going to get Cloud away and into the Slums before anything bad could happen.

"Fine, I accept your challenge, as long as you swear that if you lose, that you will leave Shinra and never show your face before me again. I will not allow you to insult and impune my devotion to my lover any longer. I thought I could deal with your crush accordingly, try to crush the idea from your skull, but I seemed to have failed." Sephiroth took off his gloves, laying them on his plate. "Cloud, you will not move from your position--do not try to save Zack. He has done this to himself."

Cloud's unfocused eyes looked blearily around. "Huh?"

"Just say yes, Cloud."

The boy looked up, his meek eyes causing Zack's heart to break yet again. "Yes... Sephir--"

"Master."

"M-master," Cloud finished, his head going down as he wrapped his hands around his thin, frail shoulders.

"SEE!?!" Zack yelled as he pulled out his sword, brandishing it at Sephiroth. "LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO HIM!"

"I do not understand what you are talking of. Now, let us fight, if you are still subjected to the notion that I would dare harm a single hair on my Cloud's head."

Sephiroth pulled out his sword and began the fight with a swift thrust.

* * *

The battle must have lasted for hours. It went on an on, an unending fight for protecting Cloud. It took a while for Zack to see that Angeal and Reno had gotten Cloud away, but now he was just wasting time to give them a few more minutes to stash his baby-chocobo away in Aeris's church.

"Give up, yet?" Zack said through a deep, coarse breath. he felt hims lungs were like pieces of rubber blown up. They were going to explode soon if he kept it up.

"Never!"

* * *

Sephiroth took a deep breath in, hoping that his sword would land a decent hit on Zack. It seemed to have been forever since their war upon each other in the cafeteria began, and he wondered idly whether Cloud had obeyed his command. So, he lifted his head to see the table that his angel was supposed to be at, only to see that his gloves were on the plate that wasn't in front of anyone.

"You did this!" Sephiroth screamed in rage as he deflected a swing of that infuriating brat's sword. "I will make you suffer."

However, little did he know at that precise moment, that Zack wrapped his fingers around a materia ball and was about to send him into an ice bath that would last for hours--enough time that he would be able to escape with Sephiroth angel, Sephiroth's love, in his ugly fingers.

"He'll never love you," Sephiroth said scathingly right before he was hit with the materia's spell. "He'll always be mine."

* * *

he was lost in the darkness, the dreariness of night

it was so dark, so cold

he wanted someone to hold him and comfort him

make him feel whole, loved, needed, and wanted

there was a face in the distance that he could almost see--those bright eyes, beautiful eyes that glowered and lit up the entire darkness

he nustled into the cold darkness and waited

the eyes would get closer, and he would know the identity of the person who he needed

* * *

Reno tossed his hands up in the air, nose twitching at the girl next to him.

She was a pretty young thing, with nice skin and hair, but Reno's nose twitched in disgust. She was most certainly a she--he could almost smell the rank odor of female genitals near him. Not even the best rack could make up for that smell.

"Oh, sweet baby Shiva, Aeris," Reno choked as he took a step away from the girl. She looked wounded. "Please start using perfume to cover the smell of that blood. It's not a nice thing to force someone into smelling any time that you get close to them."

Aeris snarled, very unlady-like. "Shut up, Reno. I'm a girl--don't talk to me like you'd talk to Zack or Tseng."

"Phhh. Like hell would I talk to Tseng like that. That fucker would string me up by my balls and set the whip on my perfect white ass." The red-haired man pulled a cigarette from behind his goggles and put the filter in his mouth. "Got a light?"

"NO."

He rolled his eyes. "You know what, he'd probably like that, actually. Tseng's got a nasty streak of sadism in him. I've only had that fine, perfectly shaped man once. Oh holy, Aeris, what I would give to do it again. Though, he'd probably be all nice and sweet with you."

Aeris pouted. "Don't talk to me about him. Remember that my luck with men seems to be lacking. All Shinra men seem to like other Shinra men."

"Well, I only said it was once, you don't need to get so fucking bitchy. Take a chill-pill. I'm sure he's got some crazy mission from Hojo that he wants him to knock you up or something anyway."

Aeris's face turned a beet red. "Don't talk like that!"

"Just telling the truth, girl."

They both looked down at the tiny boy's frame, nestled in the flowers. They framed his face beautifully, tickling his red cheeks. He looked like he had spent hours upon hours screaming and crying, which from Zack's description probably wasn't too far off.

"He's going to be so tramatized," Aeris commented as she reached down to pet the boy's blond locks.

But Reno was faster, and pulled her hand away before they could connect. With his other hand he removed the cigarette, blowing out a puff of smoke over them like a cloud. "It wouldn't be a good idea to touch him. We don't know what Sephiroth's done with him, or when he'll wake up."

"But didn't you carry him here?" Aeris asked, speculating.

"I did, but that was too much touching anyway. And I don't want to lose out on my change to knock boots with Angeal Hewley because I accidentally pissed off Sephiroth's lover and Zack's baby."

Aeris sighed and withdrew her hand. "Zack's baby... So Zack really does love Cloud?"

"Seems so," Reno said through a cough as he tossed his cigarette onto the floor, crushin git with the heel of his boot. "And I've got to be heading out in a minute, before Zack gets here. There's a nice SOLDIER ass waiting for me back at the compound anyway," he added with a wink.

Aeris waved her hand in front of him dismissively. "Just go, I'll stay with him a little longer."

And so Reno left with a small skip in his step, the left side of his body weighed bown a little more by the gun nestled deep in his pocket.

* * *

How does the battle end? Why is Aeris helping them? What does Genesis have planned? And why does Reno have a gun in his pocket? So many questions and not enough time! I promise the next chapter will be out soon, and then you will have your answers!

Tons of cookies, milk, chocolate and Cloud plushies if you review this chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

Some angsty angst in this chapter... it make me sad to think that I've been doing all this to poor Cloud-chan. I don't think he likes it, either. It'll get better! I swear!

Hehe, enjoy the chappie!

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He shivered in the bleak, cold darkness. Where was he? What was he, for that matter? He didn't know anymore. Everything was just so cold, so dark and dank and damp. Was this was hell felt like, an eternal damnation to nothingness. There wasn't even bliss in death's cold kiss.

_I want... I want to know who I am._

* * *

Zack, after exhaustedly fighting with Sephiroth for well over three hours, climbed down into the slums, searching for Aerith's bobbing brown head. She told Reno, who told Angeal, who told him, that she would be waiting in Sector Four's slums for him. They were going to bring Cloud to her church, hide him away in the flowers. That way, when Sephiroth went searching, he wouldn't find anything.

Zack laid his hand on his wounded shoulder, wincing. When Sephiroth had found out that he had had cloud taken away, he had lost any shred of humanity he had. He went loopy, and started stabbing at things. Some poor schmuck got caught in the crossfire, and was now spending a few nights in the infirmiry with his entrails dripping from his stomach. However, he'd be okay. Cloud wasn't.

Poor, poor baby chocobo, with his frightened eyes and drooping halo of sunshine and buttermilk hairs. Cloud needed to be cherished, and now that he was away from Sephiroth, that bastard, he would be treated with all of the respect he deserved.

"Cloud, I swore I'd protect you," Zack uttered.

Suddenly, something grabbed his arm, and he was sentt sprawling backwards to avoid whatever it had been.

"Oh, Zack! You must hurry! I think Cloud is _dying_. He lost all of the color in his face, and when he woke up he started babbling and asking these really weird questions, and oh! I don't know what to do!" Aeris took in a deep breath before grabbing blinding at Zack. "C'mon, we need to go see him!"

Zack didn't even comprehend that his ex-girlfriend was dragging him through the slums, and his legs followed blindly. His baby was hurt? In pain? Didn't know what was going on!?

"Oh, God."

They got to the church all too quickly, and Zack felt a stab through his entire being. It was jelly in his shoes and ears. Poor, poor Cloud... he looked so very pale, and his orbs were glassy and blank.

"Cloud!" Zack screamed as he pushed past Aerith, running past Reno (who jumped out of the way with a strangled screech), and grabbed Cloud by the arm, pulling him deeply into his chest.

The boy was unresponsive.

"Baby, talk to me, please!"

"Hnnn?"

"Oh, thank God!" Zack yelled. "C'mon, Cloud, talk. You can do it!"

"Wh.."

"Yes?"

"Who are you? Why are you talking to me?"

Zack felt his heart give a lerch. What was going on? Did Cloud... not remember him? Was his Cloud unsure of the arms wrapped around him?

"It's me, Zack. You're Cloud. Don't play like this!" Zack's voice crested into a crescendo. "Cloud, please tell me you remember who I am, right?"

The boy pulled away, his eyes like melted butter in his fingers. "Zack? I don't know who you are. I'm Cloud?"

"Yeah, love. You don't remember me? Not in the least?"

The boy looked down, his face battered with bruises. "Did you do this to me?"

"NEVER!" Zack yelled and grabbed Cloud's hand from his own face, resting his fingers lightly on Cloud's cheek. The smooth, soft skin was pliant under his minstrations. "I'd never hurt you. I'm your Zack... you're my Cloud. I love you, baby."

Cloud's eyes filled with tears. "You love me?" he whispered, "You're my... boyfriend?"

Zack almost choked, but caught himself. "Er..." He couldn't tell Cloud that his true boyfriend was an abusive man... who had raped him. He couldn't. Zack didn't have the soul to break him like that. "Yeah, baby. I'm your boyfriend... if you'll keep me."

Cloud let out a little sad cry. "If I'm with you before this, then yes. I'll stay with you, but please..."

Zack leaned forward, placing his nose against Cloud's cheek. "What is it, baby?"

"Why am I so sore... my entire body... my--it's... down _there_. Why does it hurt, Zack? Please make it stop hurting, Zack... if you love me, tell me why it hurts, then make it go away. I... I don't like hurting... my bottom... it burns."

Zack felt a twinge to his aching heartstrings. Oh, his Cloud. How could Sephiroth do something like this to him!? HOW!? It was Cloud, and those crystalline tears rolling down his cheeks was almost too much to bare.

"Someone hurt you," Zack whispered, leaning forward to kiss Cloud's cheek. "He tried to take you away from me, by submitting you to this... I stopped him, though. You'll never have to see him again, as long as we both live. I'll protect you forever, even if you can't remember the love we shared. I'll make the pain go away, let me just pull out my materia, allright? You remember what that is, right?"

Cloud nodded mutely.

Zack sat down in the flowers, running his hands over Cloud's soft jaw and tender flesh. The other had was holding a green materia ball. "Hold on a second and let me fix you up, okay? All the pain will go away, I promise. But... before I do this... do you remember anything at all? About anything--me, or you? Or maybe about..."

Cloud shook his head solomnly. "I can't remember anything, but feeling so very, very cold. Everything was blurry and there was a girl standing over me. Who was she?"

"That's Aeris, she's my...friend. She wants to help you too, but she and my other friend left. They want to give us space wo I can take care of you." Zack had noticed that the two had slipped off a few minutes before, hiding away from the light. Reno had been on his cell phone, probably trying to score a time with Angeal. That crazy, rat bastard. Though, in all intents and purposes, he had done exactly what he was supposed to do. So, Zack couldn't blame him for running off.

Zack healed Cloud, and some of the color returned to his cheeks. The boy uttered a thank you, leaning a little ways away from Zack, who could only understand what Cloud was going through.

"I'm sorry," the blonde boy whispered forlornly. "I feel like I've done something bad, that I did something horrible and I need to be punished... I shouldn't feel so nice."

Sephiroth's training! That bastard. What had he done--making Cloud despise the feeling of fleeting human comfort? Was it the constant raping and degradation that caused Cloud's feeble mind and body to hate the warmth of Zack's fingers, of his very being? This was another tick of Zack's reason to hate the man.

He was so flawed, and in some way the ebony-haired man could have understood how much complete and utter pain the Sephiroth-- the good Sephiroth, the Seph he knew in the War, had gone through. That man had been human, had wept in pain, screamed in sorrow, smiled in joy. That Sephiroth was a good man, even with blood under his nails. These actions were new, scarily nothing like the Seph that Zack knew. That was the monster, like it had been pulled directly from Hojo's sick, twisted mi--

Wait. Hojo... did this begin all because of that man? There had been something fishy going of with Sephiroth ever since his annual check-up... in fact, if Zack remembered the date, it was... no, it couldn't have been...

Had Sephiroth been forced into a relationship with his Cloud by Hojo, causing the boy such pain and torment. And why would he do something like that?

Zack thought on it, but couldn't come up with any reason. Cloud was just Cloud--a beautiful, sweet trooper that wanted to be a one day he drew the elusive Sephiroth's eye, and since that day they had been locked in their painful enchantment. Cloud had been happy at first, as well as Sephiroth. They did seem to be... in love. But that changed, that snapped, and Zack could only wonder...

"Damn that Hojo, he did this, didn't he?"

Cloud looked up questioningly, his eyes bright like stars. "Who's Hojo? I don't like that name." He shivered in the non-existent breeze.

"He's a bad man," Zack answered as he attempted to get closer to Cloud. The boy looked wearily around before consenting, moving an inch or so closer, enough for Zack to touch his cheek, looking for any further damage. "And it looks like your wounds are almost all gone... I'm sorry I have to touch you, Cloud. If you want, I can just--"

"No!" Cloud pled. "Please don't leave me! If you love me like you've said, you can't just leave me. What if that person--the man who hurt me--Hojo comes back? What if he wants to make me do it again. Oh, Zack--even if I can't remember our love ,you can't submit me to that again! Even if I don't remember it, I can still feel my lingering pain. Don't go, please... Please don't go."

And Zack couldn't leave him alone, not when the boy was staring at him with eyes that pure, beautiful blue. It would have been a sin.

"Okay, Cloud... I'll stay here. I'll never leave you again, okay?"

* * *

Reno leaned against the wall of some shady, dimly-lit bar. He was looking for one face in particular before he headed off into his new lover's arms. What a nice, perfectly sculpted ass that was waiting for him back topside. He could almost taste Angeal's breath on his neck, that well-endowed cock pulsing inside of him, making his entire being quiver like an arrow.

But, alas, there was a little thing he needed to do before then. Sure, he liked Zack--he was a good tumble in the sheets, but he was no GOD. This man, if he just twisted things a little bit, would do whatever he wanted. And though Reno was no whore, he felt something deep in his very being that made the man he was waiting for just that much more perfect.

This wasn't about sex... what he was planning was much more in-depth. Hojo said that he could do it, give Reno what he wanted more than anything with the man he always wanted. The man hadn't seemed all that afraid of a relationship with the Turk--who was he kidding? Reno knew he was hot, and that his ass was nice enough that any SOLDIER would want to drill into him, to leave their fluids inside of him. He was theirs. But, most importantly, he was _his_. Ever since he was a little kid he wanted this man... and the chance came and he grabbed. No one could blame him.

"So, my beautiful little Turk," Genesis purred, snapping the book in his hand shut. Reno's head snapped up and he went to grab his gun, only to notice who was speaking. He let his hand slide down the side of his pants. "Yes, it's me, my Turk."

"Yeah," Reno breathed, in utter awe of the man before him. Temples could be erected for this man.

"So," Genesis leaned close and let his dusky breath course over Reno's lips. "My Turk... you'll be playing with Angeal tonight? And then, once you've had your fill, I would imagine you'll be meeting me in my rooms? I'll have everything ready--Hojo has given me everything that's needed. Then, we'll play."

Reno nodded, his breath escaping him. "Yeah," he said after a moment, denying himself the moment to lean forward and capture Genesis's lips in a kiss. Oh, Shiva, did he want him.

"Then everything is settled. I imagine that... soon. This world will be a very different place. Wouldn't you agree?"

* * *

What are they planning? Oh no! I don't want to spoil it, but Reno's been a very naughty boy. In the next chapter we'll finally have a bit more light--and some smut too! We all like smut, because it's smut! Woohoo! Who doesn't like that, eh?

Cookies, milk and a very sad chibi Sephiroth for all the reviewers. Poor Sephy... he doesn't know what's going on! Damn that Hojo.


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